Storyline of Blitz: The League I
This is the storyline of ''Blitz: The League''. Storyline The story involves taking a cellar-dwelling Division III team and improving them to play in the League Championship Game. The true intent is to build the team to a point of success where local taxpayers will approve a bond to build the team a new stadium. In addition, several individual players are faced with trials and tribulations. Beginning of Game The Setup The storyline begins during the closing moments of the previous season's final game, where the player-created team is trailing the New York Nightmare. During the closing seconds, the player's team makes one final play to win the game, but the quarterback is sacked and injured by Quentin Sands, ending his career. The loss bumps the player's team down to Division III, while the Nightmare is moved up to Division I. After the game, Lyman Strang, the owner of the player's team, unveils his new stadium plan to Sheila Andrews, the mayor of the team's city. She initially refuses to support the bond measure, believing it would screw voters who would be paying heavy taxes to support a losing team. Strang makes a bet with Mayor Andrews that if the team wins the League Championship, she would support the bond measure. If the team fails to win, Strang will make a large donation to Andrews' reelection fund. Customization Strang orders a complete overhaul of the team, choosing a new nickname, color scheme, logo, and personnel. All of these are left to the individual player. After choosing the aesthetics of the team, the player chooses a new coach, new offensive and defensive coordinator, a rookie offensive player, veteran defensive player, and a new team doctor. The player is given a choice of three candidates on each position, each emphasizing strengths in some areas and weaknesses in others, or containing a balance without leanings for one particular area. Division 3 The player's team sets out to make its mark in Division 3. Initially, attendance at home games is low, and even Mayor Andrews refuses to take the team seriously. She comments on the veteran's presence, thinking him to have retired the previous season. Strang explains that his extravagant lifestyle has caught up to him, and he needs the money. He is later seen begging Strang for an increase in pay under his contract due to a messy divorce that saw his ex-wife take a large amount of his fortune, and demand high alimony. He is also revealed to have made bad stock investments, as he is seen frustrated that a stock has tanked. The rookie, meanwhile, discovers that Jacqui, the team's head cheerleader, went to the same college as him (Northern University). They begin talking in between plays, but are reluctant to date each other due to The League's strict prohibitions on player-cheerleader interactions. The team manages to make the Division 3 Championship against the Arizona Outlaws. While the veteran does not believe that winning the "Scrub Division" is much of an accomplishment, the rest of the team is thrilled. The victory allows iRiver to seek out and purchase the naming rights to the current stadium, and make improvements to it. The victory also gives the team added financial success, which Strang uses to sign Bruno Battaglia, the now-former captain of the Baltimore Bearcats, to the team, despite the coach's objection. Division 2 The team continues its success in Division 2. The veteran's problems continue to mount, as he receives notice from a collection agency that payments on his car are past due. Following a home game against the Minnesota Reapers, he finds a boot attached to his car in the parking lot. At this point, the veteran calls his bookie on a cell phone to place a bet on a college game, showing that his woes are also largely due to a gambling problem. Mayor Andrews, however, invites the veteran into her limousine, and they work out a deal for him to star in a commercial promoting the city. It is also implied that Andrews and the veteran have undertaken a sexual relationship. The addition of Battaglia has proven to cause friction in the locker room, particularly with the rookie. The rookie finds Battaglia hitting on Jacqui after a game, and she explains that they know each other from their previous time in The League (hinting that Jacqui may have been a Bearcats cheerleader at one point). The rookie is flustered, and refuses to speak to Jacqui for some time. Despite these problems, the team continues its winning ways, defeating the Reapers in the Division 2 Championship Game. iRiver provides more money to even further improve the existing stadium, and (in the XBox 360 version only), the team is able to acquire former team captain Tito Maas from the Outlaws. Attendance picks up, and the stadium bond measure gains support. Division 1 The team's arrival in Division 1 is beset by problems almost from the start. While at a nightclub celebrating their win in the Division 2 Championship, Mayor Andrews catches the veteran flirting with another woman at the club. The team also runs into the New York Nightmare, who have arrived in town for the next night's game, as well as to film a beer commercial, which, according to Quentin Sands, "only real teams get to do." Sands mocks the team for its inexperience in Division 1, and personally insults the rookie saying he is not man enough to satisfy Jacqui. This leads the rookie to attack Sands, sparking a brawl between the two teams. The player's entire team is arrested, and it is only Strang's pleading that the city would lose money from its biggest game in history that convinces Andrews to bail the team out. She refuses to release the veteran, however, as she is still angry at what she saw him doing in the club. The game against the Nightmare is also disastrous, as Sands lays a dirty, late hit on the rookie, tearing his MCL. At this point, he is expected to be out for the rest of the season. The rookie, however, returns when the team plays the Nightmare on the road. (Although, when playing the game, this can be avoided. The late hit always comes in the second quarter. Simply never make any offensive plays after the first quarter and only punt. Your rookie will not be taken out, although it's pretty difficult to win against the Nightmare with only whatever points you can score in the first quarter. When the veteran is released from jail, his problems begin anew. No longer in Andrews' good graces, he once again finds himself deep in debt. When lifting weights alone in the team workout room, his bookies enter, press a barbell against his throat, and threaten his life if he is unable to come up with the money. The team manages to make the League Championship Game against the Nightmare. The night before the game, the veteran, desperate to pay his debts, meets with Sands in a club, and secretly sells him his copy of the team's playbook. He informs his bookie that he has the money, but wishes to bet it on the championship game. During the game, Sands expresses surprise that none of the team's plays appear in the book. He quickly realizes that the copy the veteran sold him was fake. The team goes on to defeat the Nightmare and become League Champions. Aftermath The team is shown celebrating in the locker room. The veteran decides to stick around and play for a few more years. The rookie reconciles with Jacqui, who is willing to lose her job to be with him. The stadium bond measure is revealed to have passed, but Strang's proposition of a celebratory three-way with Mayor Andrews and another woman are shot down by both women. Schedule 2005 Schedule Division III Week 1 Player's Team @ Arizona Outlaws Cincinnati Crusaders @ Washington Redhawks Chicago Marauders @ Baltimore Bearcats Week 2 Cincinnati Crusaders @ Player's Team Arizona Outlaws @ Chicago Marauders Washington Redhawks @ Baltimore Bearcats Week 3 Player's Team @ Washington Redhawks Chicago Marauders @ Cincinnati Crusaders Baltimore Bearcats @ Arizona Outlaws Week 4 Chicago Marauders @ Player's Team Baltimore Bearcats @ Cincinnati Crusaders Arizona Outlaws @ Washington Redhawks Week 5 Player's Team @ Baltimore Bearcats Washington Redhawks @ Chicago Marauders Arizona Outlaws @ Cincinnati Crusaders Week 6 Washington Redhawks @ Player's Team Cincinnati Crusaders @ Baltimore Bearcats Chicago Marauders @ Arizona Outlaws Week 7 Player's Team @ Cincinnati Crusaders Chicago Marauders @ Washington Redhawks Arizona Outlaws @ Baltimore Bearcats Week 8 Baltimore Bearcats @ Player's Team Cincinnati Crusaders @ Chicago Marauders Washington Redhawks @ Arizona Outlaws Week 9 Player's Team @ Chicago Marauders Cincinnati Crusaders @ Arizona Outlaws Baltimore Bearcats @ Washington Redhawks Week 10 Arizona Outlaws @ Player's Team Washington Redhawks @ Cincinnati Crusaders Baltimore Bearcats @ Chicago Marauders Division III Championship Player's Team @ Arizona Outlaws Category:Blitz: The League